The Avatar and His Friends
by Dinoluvr
Summary: This is a challenge from BlueEclipse that I recently decided to start. Each of the 100 chapters will have a focus word, and different characters will be introduced for each chapter. I will decided which one best represents that word. Enjoy!
1. Beginning

_**Authors Note: **So, when I should be updating everything else, I've begun a prompts challenge. Not my smartest move, but oh well X3 Anyways, this is the first prompt, and the word as you can see is Beginning. Now, my first thought was focusing on the beginning of a romance between characters, but then Azula kept bugging me so I decided to show her beginning, when her personality first began to take a turn for the worse. _

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**1. Beginning**

Azula awoke with a shudder, having had yet another nightmare. She had been falling, falling from a point unknown to her. And where she was falling to? She had no idea. She always woke up before the end.

Crawling out of bed, Azula quietly padded down the halls, bare feet making faint smacking noises against the cold, tile floor. Hearing quicker steps up ahead, she slowed. This could possibly be a good bit of castle gossip, and she was not going to miss it. Not even when her dream had left her quite shaken.

As she peered around a column, the sight stopped her heart. It was her mother, walking quickly down the halls as if she were fleeing from something. What could her mother possibly be doing at this hour? And what was with the cloak, hiding her face from sight.

Azula squinted her eyes against the dimmed candle light, resisting the urge to light it with her signature blue glow. Her mother stopped just before exciting the room, fixing Azula with her eyes, a signature burnt gold color.

"Azula." She said simply, as if offering her to come out of her hiding place. She obliged, stepping out from behind the pillar almost unwillingly. It was no secret, Zuko had always been her mother's favorite. And nothing Azula did ever seemed to sway her affections.

What did that woman see in Zuko anyways? He wasn't that strong of a bender, and it wasn't like he had shown any other remarkable talents. It just didn't make sense to her. Her father, on the other hand, saw her value. Why couldn't her own mother? The mother who considered her a monster for her gifts.

"I'm leaving." She continued, jerking Azula away from her silent reverie.

She blinked in shock, leaving? Why would she do that? After voicing her thoughts aloud, her mother just gave her a sad smile. "Take care, Azula… Just remember who you are, and don't let things like power corrupt you… You can rise above things like that." Her mom said, almost as if pleading for them both to believe those words.

Azula narrowed her eyes, "Anything is better than becoming a weakling like you or Zuko!" she growled, turning within the blink of an eye to run back to her room.

Her mother stared after her silently, already seeing her daughter's life as it flashed through her mind. This was only the beginning, that she knew for sure. With a quiet sigh, she tightened the cloak around her, heading towards the exit once again. It pained her, leaving like this, but it was necessary… She only hoped it wouldn't be for nothing.

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_**Authors Note: **Just a little side note, the falling dream as a bit of meaning. If you can figure out what that meaning is, kudos to you! XD Then again, it may make perfect sense to me, but make absolutely no sense to anyone else :p Hope you enjoyed this first little prompt, and I'll try to update 'I Can Hear The Bells' and 'What is This Feeling' next :3 Adios!_


	2. Love

_**Authors Note: **__Here's the second installment of my 100 prompts :) The word was 'love' so I decided to write this one on my second favorite pairing, Sukka :3 Hope you enjoy! _

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2. Love

Suki watched quietly as Sokka painted his latest 'masterpiece', an amused smile on her face. It's been over a year since they moved to the South Pole and married, and their first child was already on its way. Sokka had decided that the baby needed to be able to appreciate art at a young age, so he had set to work on an entire gallery.

She loved watching him while he was working on something he enjoyed, not that he was any good, but it was the happy glow the seemed to emanate from him.

Holding up his current project, Sokka glanced back at Suki, grinning from ear to ear. "Look! It's us in our Kyoshi outfits!" he exclaimed excitedly, but she had to admit it resembled a couple of penguins more than them.

"It's great, honey!" she said instead, hoping to put the right amount of enthusiasm behind it. Apparently it worked because his smile widened and he quickly signed his name at the bottom.

"There, another masterpiece for our son to enjoy." He stated proudly, standing up to face her.

Suki raised an eyebrow, "So it's a boy, huh?" she asked with a hint of a challenge. They'd been fighting about this ever since she discovered the news.

Sokka smirked, "I just know it's a boy. How else would the baby be able to have all of my strength an good looks?"

She rolled her eyes, "Oh yes, how." She scoffed sarcastically. "I still think it's going to be a girl. Everyone knows girls are smarter and stronger." She smirked back.

He shook his head, wrapping her in a hug, "No way… Unless we're talking about you, of course." He added quickly.

"Nice save." She giggled, resting her forehead against his neck. These were her favorite moments… Well, this and the times when she beats him in one of their training fights.

He laughed with her, "Thanks, I've been known to be pretty good at those." He chuckled. "I love you Suki." He added in a whisper.

Suki smiled, pulling away to look at him. "I love you more." She whispered back, standing on her toes to press a kiss to his lips.

A shout interrupted them as one of the village children called out to Sokka as he came to their tent. "Sokka! Sokka!" he chanted, seeming excited about something.

Sokka grinned at the boy, squatting down to be on eye level with him. "What is it, soldier?" he asked, tilting his head.

The boy smiled back, "Me and some of the others were wondering if you could tell us the story about how you and the avatar defeated the evil fire lord." He asked, and Sokka gave Suki a glance.

She nodded, shooing him away playfully, "Go on, Mr. Chief. Your public awaits." She giggled.

Sokka rolled his eyes in return, giving her another quick kiss before racing out of the tent, already shouting out for them to listen up. She laughed quietly and shook her head, resting her hands on her growing belly as she watched her husband. How did she end up so lucky?


	3. Hate

_**Authors Note: **__So here is the third installment to my '100 Prompts' challenge. This chapter was the word 'hate' and I decided to focus more on Ozai as he sat in his cell, thinking on everything that had happened. He was bound to have hatred for somebody, right? Anyway, hope you guys enjoy reading this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it._

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3. Hate

Ozai sat in his small, dark, and damp cell, alone to his thoughts as he contemplated his life. He had once been so powerful; people quaked when they heard his name, as they rightfully should. He broke hope and dashed dreams, laughing in the face of his victims.

And then the avatar came along.

Long thought to be gone, the boy had come along last moment, destroying everything his father and grandfather had worked so hard to achieve. Who was he to defeat the greatest fire lord that ever lived? How had a mere boy destroyed him from the inside out?

Killing him would have been mercy, he now saw, and had to give the avatar props for putting him inside his own private hell. His bending had been taken, his _being_ had been taken. Leaving behind nothing but an empty shell of who he once was, his failure of a son parading around as if he were actually worthy of being called 'fire lord'.

He hated the avatar, hated his son, and even hated himself for being stupid enough to underestimate the avatar and his friends. How he hated himself for that moment. The feelings inside of him seemed to engulf him, keeping him prisoner in their chains. Everything he had lived for, gone in an instant.

A guard walked in, spitting out an insult as he slid the disgusting slop they called food into his cell. Laughing at his own cleverness, the guard sneered before once again leaving the broken man to his thoughts.

Ozai didn't touch the meal, fighting the groans his stomach made in protest. It had been a few days since he'd last eaten, and his strength was beginning to visible wane as his bones got more and more prominent. He hoped to end his own life soon, to put an end to all of his self loathing and anger.

He stared up at the ceiling of his cell where a barred window sat, gazing up at the countless stars that littered the black sky. He couldn't help but give a wry smile as he realized he'd never admired the stars before this, he'd always been too busy to do so.

Turning away from the food, he settled into the far corner, curling into a ball to conserve his warmth in the cool air as he waited for sleep to find him. And find him it did as he drifted off into a dreamless slumber.


	4. Dark

_**Authors Note: **__The fourth installment to my 100 prompts! Yay! :) This one was actually kind of fun to write, even though the word was darkness I found that I could really get into this chapter. Its about Zuko when he is accepted back into the fire nation after 'killing' Aang in Book 2 :3 Hope you enjoy! R x R ;D_

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4. Dark

Zuko ran a hand through his messy black hair, amber eyes reflecting the glow of the lantern that sat on his desk. He'd been back for three days now, shouldn't he be happy already? Shouldn't he feel complete? His father loved him again, and yet he still wasn't satisfied.

Collapsing onto the bed, Zuko heaved an exasperated sigh. Uncle hadn't spoke to him at all since they'd returned, which could have something to do with him being thrown into a fire nation prison cell. Zuko grimaced at the thought, burying his face into the clean sheets. They smelled like lilacs, and he almost smiled as he was reminded of his mother.

His mother. The woman who had given birth to him and cared for him. The woman who had left in the dark of the night when he was just a boy. Now that he reflected on it, he realized the chain of events. Once his mother had left, everything went wrong. All by one, tiny act.

Lifting himself up, he slammed the flickering lantern to the ground, growling in anger. Why did it have to be him? Why was he going through this? Why didn't his mother stay with him, why did she leave him with his monster father?

As soon as the thought went through his mind, he froze. Monster? He hadn't meant anything like that, it had just sort of come to him. His father wasn't a monster; he had offered him back with open hands. A monster wouldn't do that… Right?

Zuko couldn't shake the thoughts that ran through his brain, and quickly grabbed his cloak. Maybe Uncle would be able to help him out; maybe he could shine some light into his troubled mind. Pulling up his hood, Zuko slipped stealthily through the halls, the only noise being his cloak as it intermittently slid across the tile floor.

Leaving the castle was easy work, and it was even easier getting into the prison as most of the prison guards had fallen asleep while on duty. Zuko suppressed the urge to frighten them as he made his way towards his uncle's cell, knowing he would get into just as much trouble for being out at this hour. Especially when treason was running rampant among the people.

Entering the small, damp cell, Zuko flinched at Iroh's state. He looked terrible with his baggy clothes and stringy hair hanging around his hunched shoulders. Walking up to the metal bars, Zuko swallowed in an attempt to remove the thickness from his voice, "Uncle?" he asked, not daring to hope.

Silence.

He didn't answer, didn't even turn around to acknowledge Zuko's presence. Zuko fought back the traitor tears, grinding his teeth together in hurt and rejection. "Fine, don't speak to me. See what I care, you crazy old man!" he shouted, letting his anger boil over. "I don't need your help, I don't need anybody! I've got everything I've ever hoped for now, and it was no thanks to you." He spat, rage simmering.

Iroh still didn't turn, but instead spoke evenly in his grandfatherly voice, "Zuko, do you truly have everything you've ever wanted? Are you truly happy? Because if you were, you wouldn't be here right now." He said, tone growing doleful towards the end.

Zuko's eyes widened in shock, Uncle's question striking a cord in his mind.

"You need to find your own way out of the darkness; for until you do, you are blinder than the badgermole." Uncle continued, speaking in his usual proverbs.

Zuko just stared at the back of his uncle's head for a moment, brain processing those words in silence. Finally, he stood; cloak billowing out behind him as he turned and walked out of the cell. Uncle was the one who was blind, not him.

As he fell asleep that night; his dreams were haunted with images of his mother and uncle, always seeming to end with his father or sister laughing at him, taunting him for the rest of his life.


	5. Light

_**Author's Note: **__So, here you are, prompt number 5! This was a relatively easy chapter to write, maybe because there wasn't much action or thought behind it, and its just a little fluffy peice that I wrote considering its the first thing that poped into my head when I saw the word. Anyways, hope you enjoy! I love reviews, by the way ;) So just a shout out to everyone who has reviewed my previous chapters, I love you guys! :D So before I get all sappy, I'll let you get to the chapter X3 Oh, it contains the characters: Sokka, Katara, Aang, and a little bit of Appa ;p_

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5. Light

The first rays of sunlight pierced through the treetops, illuminating the small clearing in which the three of them sat. As Aang looked at his two best friends, huddled over a map while deep in a heated discussion, he couldn't help but smile.

Katara, of course, represented an angel with the warm halo of light that surrounded her. Sokka, however, looked more like a light bulb then anything as he waved his hands around to enunciate whatever point he was trying to make.

The siblings were currently trying to find the safest, and fastest, route that would lead to the Northern Water Tribe. They'd already been travelling for days, but the farther they went, the more they realized that a detour might be in order.

"I'm telling you Katara, this is the best way! It's practically a straight flight from here to the North Pole!" Sokka objected, pointing out a path.

"But this is the safest! A couple of days won't make that much of a difference if it means we get there in one piece."

Aang shook his head, laughing silently as he headed over, squatting in between them as he studied the map. "We can take the long way." He said hesitantly, glancing at Sokka. "I used to visit some of these places all the time."

Sokka huffed, rolling up the map. "Fine. Whatever. But don't come crying to me when the Fire Nation kills us all because we wanted to take the scenic route." He said, starting to pack up their various supplies.

Katara chuckled at her brother before looking back at Aang, giving him a smile. The light that danced in her blue eyes distracted him for a moment before he realized she was speaking, and he mentally kicked himself. "I'm sorry, what?" he asked, fighting the blush that appeared.

She giggled, finding his clumsy nature endearing. "I was just wondering why you decided on the safe route. I thought you would have agreed with Sokka, seeing as you were so eager to learn Waterbending." she repeated, a single eyebrow raised in curiosity.

Aang laughed sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head like he always did when he was nervous. "I just… Really wanted to visit my old friends you know…. Considering they were still alive and all…. And I would like the see how much things have changed in the last hundred years, because, you know, everything's so different now." He stumbled along, fighting for something to say that would make a valid excuse.

Katara just smiled, despite his fears, and nodded in agreement, "That makes sense. Who knows, we may find you a master for each of the elements along the way." She added helpfully, standing and heading towards where Appa was, Sokka loading up the last of their things.

Hopping up quickly, Aang followed, breathing a quick sigh of relief. Jumping up to where he normally sat, he grabbed the long leather reins and said the traditional 'yip yip', letting the bison know it was time to go.

As he flew, his mind was allowed to wander, and as usual, it immediately went to Katara. The day he had first met her actually. The arctic sun had framed her hooded face then, too, and again his first thought had been that she was an angel that had descended straight from heaven. The light in her heart was obvious, too, in the way the she was kind to everyone, and was always thinking of others before herself.

With a dreamy grin plastered on his face, Aang steered Appa through the clouds, guiding them wherever their journey would lead.


	6. Memory

_**Authors Note: **__Here is the sixth installement of the challenge, and the word I had to use was memory. The first person that came to mind for me was Zuko, mainly because he has plenty of memories, both good and bad. I realize that a lot of my chapters have to do with the royal family, but their family drama is usually perfect for these X3 So without further ado, chapter six! :D_

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6. Memory

Zuko sighed as he ran a hand through his black hair, having just taken out that irritating hairpiece he was forced to wear in public. He missed the good old days, when he didn't have protocols to follow and he could walk around with his hair in his eyes if he wanted to.

The memories haunted him whenever he was alone, but it was mainly the bad ones. Only a month had passed since the comet had come and gone, and everyone had finally gone their separate ways, but Zuko couldn't shake every bad memory he had collected.

The most prevalent was that of his mother leaving him, abandoning him, to the cruel hands of his father. Azula also haunted him, her crazed laugh ringing through his ears at almost every turn. Then, of course, he could hear his father calling him a failure, weak, and a disgrace to the entire family name.

Leaning against the wall as he felt a pang of nausea, Zuko gritted his teeth in anger, frustration, fear, and pretty much any other emotion you could think of. If only Mai hadn't gone to visit her family, he would have at least some comfort to scare away these unwanted feelings.

After a few moments, Zuko finally managed to collect himself enough to pull away from the wall, taking deep breaths in an effort to calm himself. When he had gone to his father cell a month ago, demanding to know where his mother was, he hadn't gotten a single clue.

It would have probably been best to just let the issue drop after all of these years, but Zuko just couldn't bring himself to do it. Questioning his father daily hadn't helped at all, and now he was stuck at a complete impasse.

Uncle had grown increasingly ill after the battle, leading Zuko to believe that it would only be a matter of time before the old man finally took his last breath. It pained him to even think about it.

Walking slowly down the corridor, he finally came to his destination: the small balcony that overlooked the citizens of the Fire Nation. As the orange sun moved below the earth, Zuko watched the people mill about, engrossed in their usual activities. It always calmed him when he came out here, mainly because it reminded him that the whole world wasn't as chaotic as his was. It almost kept him sane.

A smile found its way onto his face as he remembered all the times he had come up here with Mai and the gang, talking and laughing as if everything was going to be ok. Of course, for most of them it would be ok. Zuko was the odd one of the group. Why couldn't his life be as simple as Sokka's, Toph's, or even Aang's? He would rather bear all the responsibilities that being the Avatar entails, than deal with his personal dramas.

A servant called from within the palace as he was engrossed with his thoughts, stating that the military leaders had assembled for the monthly meeting that was to take place. Sighing loudly to himself, he took one last glance at the setting sun, and all the memories it held, before slipping inside to ready himself.


	7. Innocence

_**Authors Note: **__What do ya know, another chapter on Zuko XD Anyways, the word I had was innocence so I decided to write it on the period shortly after Zuko is banished. I hope you guys enjoy, even if I don't like how I portrayed Zuko in this one XP_

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7. Innocence

Zuko stared out at the crystal blue water with his good eye, a slight sting residing in the burn on his other. The white bandage that had been around his head was slightly itchy, but he ignored it. Like the burn, his pride, his honor, was still stinging after his father had burned and banished him.

Anger flared like a flame within him, and he was barely able to stop from punching something as he gritted his teeth together, hands heating unconsciously. He was only thirteen, and yet his own father had seen fit to put him out in the world on his own, destroying what little innocence he had left.

The image of his mother leaving him was burned into his brain, and he couldn't keep from mentally curse her. It was all her fault his father had done this; it's all her fault because she left him alone.

Bitter tears stung behind his closed eyelid, and a single drop of moisture managed to escape and slide down his cheek. Why? Why him? Why did his mother leave? Why was his sister the favorite? Why couldn't his father love him? Just why?

His uncle appeared behind him, sipping his usual cup of tea. "Zuko, why don't you come inside? It's getting dark." The old man said, eyeing his nephew with concern.

Opening his good eye once more, the tears gone, Zuko noted that it had, in fact, grown darker. "I'll come inside when I'm ready." He answered curtly, wanting to be alone once more.

Sighing, Iroh spoke again, "Dwelling on the past only causes more pain; it's time to let it go."

"Why can't you just leave me alone? Can't you tell that I'm tired of your 'advice'? Just leave me alone!" Zuko shouted, whirling on the man in uncontained anger.

Without flinching, his uncle gave a small bow, "As you wish, Prince Zuko." He responded, soul filled with sorrow for the young man.

Turning back to the ocean, Zuko listened as Iroh went back into the hull of the ship, almost instantly regretting his outburst. The old man had been nothing but nice to him since his banishment, but kindness seemed weak. He couldn't afford to be seen as weak.

Narrowing his eye at the blue expanse before him, he made a vow. Never again would he be seen as the weak, defenseless, little boy he used to be. No, he would find the avatar, restore his honor, and earn his father's love no matter how long it took him. He would once again be the crown prince of the Fire Nation, and even Azula would be jealous of him once it was all over.

Smiling to himself, wincing slightly as it moved his burn, Zuko turned and headed into the ship, content with this new mindset. He was destined to succeed where his ancestors had failed, and he would be remembered for centuries as the prince who destroyed the avatar.

As he fell asleep that night, his mind was bombarded with images of him returning to the Fire Nation, avatar in hand as his father embraced and congratulated him on his success. He could practically hear the shouts of praise and congratulation coming from the crowd; and for the first time in a long time, he was almost grinning as he slipped into sleep.


End file.
